Toy building-blocks.



F. M. BURROWES.-

TOY BUILDING BLOCKS. 111110111011 FILED 11111.15, 1910.

1,009,468. Pat en ted 110121, 1911.

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Specification of Letters Patent. 1 Paiientgfi o 21, 1911,

Application filed August 15, 1910. Serial No. 577,356.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK M. Bunnowns, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of Portland, in the county of Cumberland and State ofMaine, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Toy Building-Blocks, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to toy building blocks for building toy houses andother like constructions. Hitherto such building blocks have beencommonly made so that they will rest, one upon another without anyfastening, the whole being held together simply by the weight of theblocks.

The object of my invention is to construct a set of building blockswhereby a child may put together a house or any similar construction insuch a way that it will hold together firmly and may be usedfor thepinposeof a play house or in the manner of a permanent toy.

A further object is to render toy constructions easy to build by makingthe blocks stick firmly together as the building goes on asdistinguished from resting one block on another a process which requiresa very steady hand. 4

The invention consists of theseveral features of construction ashereinafter de scribed and claimed.

I have illustrated my invention by means of the accompanying drawings inwhich Figure l is an end elevation of a toy house constructed of myimproved building blocks, Fig. 2 is an end view of two courses of theroof blocks, Fig. 3 is a face view of the same, Fig.4 is an end view oftwo of the common blocks fitted together, Fig. 5 is a face view of thesame, Fig. 6 is a perspective view of one of the common blocks, Fig. 7is an elevation of a modified form of the common blocks showing themanner of forming a pier or column, Fig. 8 is a side elevation of one ofthe wedge-shaped blocks for completing the roof courses and for otherpurposes, Fig. 9 is an end view of the same,

Fig. 10 is an end view of the two ridge pole.

pieces and Fig. 11 is a detailed section on the line at w of Fig. 1. Theset of blocks as I prefer to make them up consist of the common oblongblocks A' shaped approximately like an ordinary brick and capableofbeing laid up, course upon course, like brick work. Each block issecured to the block below it by a groove 0' formed on its under sideand adapted to fit a corresponding tongue or rib a in the.

next block below. These tongues and grooves are made central andlongitudinal of the blocks for ordinary straight work but for buildingup columns and piers and the like and for turning corners, certainblocks are formed with one transverse groove as shown in Fig. 1 or withtwo as shown'in Fig. 7.

Door frames and window frames areprovided and may be fitted in place andthe blocks are joined to the casings of the win dow and door frames byribs and grooves as shown in Fig. 11 where a ribb is formed on thecasing of the window frame B which fits a groove in the end of theblock. a

In forming the corners of the building, blocks are selected which haveone transverse groove as well as the longitudinal groove as shown inFig. 1.

The slope of the roof is formed by the roof courses which are terminatedby wedgelocks F having grooves on the r shaped under si es and whenfitted in the ends of the roof course's they form a true roof slope. Theroof is made up offlat roof blocks as C made in full and half lengths.Each block has a dovetail groove 0' on its lower edge anda correspondingrib on its upper edge. As I prefer to make this joint, the rib consistsof a cylindrical bead slightly oilset with a groove which enables therib to be inserted when the parts are held at an angle. When the blocksare laid down flat they will not pull apart A roof covering may thusbebuilt up by securing the several courses together atv the edges andhaving the blocks of each course break joints, which will hold togetherand form a substantially solid iece. P To secure the covering pieces inplaceon the slope of the roof, I provide ridgepole pieces which havegrooves in one edge to fit the ribs of the regular roof blocks, theupper or adjacent edges being tongued and grooved so that they may bereadily secured together.

As already pointed out, certain blocks 'have two transverse grooves onthe bottom for building up columns as shown in Fig. 7

All the parts used have this characteristic, that they are fastenedtogether by ribs and grooves fitting together,

A set of blocks made in this way may be used to build a great variety ofconstructions and each one after being built will be to a great extentpermanent. It'may be used for a play house and rebuilt in other formsenabling children to exercise their skill and inventiveness to anyextent.

The sets of blocks may be made with any desired number in a set and withsufiicient number of blocks large and elaborate toy buildings may bebuilt.

I claim:

l. A set of building blocks including cooperating members havinginterfitting tongue and grooved portions formed to register and engageedgewise in one position of said members and prevent separation inanother position thereof.

2. A set of building blocks including cooperating members havingcomplementary connecting instrumentalities formed to register and engageedgewise in a predetermined relation of said members and to interlock toprevent separation in another relation thereof.

3. A set of building blocks including cooperating members havin tongueand grooved portions arranged in one position to permit edgewiseentrance of the tongue into the groove and another position to cause thetongue to hook in the groove and prevent separation of the members. i

4. A set of building blocks including cooperating members havin a tongueand groove preventing separation of the members when in a common planeand permitting separation thereof upon angular disposition of saidmembers.

5. A set of building blocks including cooperating members having atongue and groove adapted to be engaged when the members are in apredetermined relation and to interlock to prevent disengagement and toform an angle or ridge upon chang ing the relation of said members.

6. A set of building blocks including a pair of ridge pole pieces, eachof which is formed on its lower edge to engage roof blocks, said ridgepole pieces having a detachable engagement therebetween at their upperedges, substantially as described.

7. A set of building blocks including a I pair of ridge pole pieces,each of which is formed on its lower edge to engage roof blocks, saidridge pole pieces having a detachable engagement therebetween at theirupper edges comprising interlocking tongue and groove portions,substantially as described.

8. A set of building blocks including flat rectangular roof blocks, eachhaving a dovetail groove on one edge, one side of said groove beingoflset inside of the mouth or opening of the groove, and a correspondingtongue on the other edge of each block adapted to enter said groove whenthe blocks are at an angle and to permit the blocks being brought to acommonplane.

9. A set of building blocks including fiat rectangular blocks made inwhole and half lengths, each block having a groove on one edge and acorresponding tongue on the other edge, a pair of flat ridge pole piecesFRANK M. BURROWES.

In the presence of S. W. BATES, PERCY M. ANDREWS.

